


il taglio di capelli

by plotweaver



Category: The Old Guard (Comics), The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Facial Shaving, Fluff, Grooming, M/M, Slice of Life, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:29:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26151139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/plotweaver/pseuds/plotweaver
Summary: Throughout the centuries, mankind made wondrous leaps in innovation. Interchangeable parts, assembly lines, a man on the moon.And, most notably, electronic clippers and specialty shears.OrEvery few weeks, Nicky gives Joe a haircut and shave. Fluff ensues.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 12
Kudos: 335





	il taglio di capelli

**Author's Note:**

> While I do speak Italian, it's a very americanized dialect (thank my nonni). So I totally get if the interspersed Italian doesn't feel in character for these guys. Also, I tried to write it so that translations were not necessary, but let me know if you're still confused and I'll add them.

Throughout the centuries, mankind made wondrous leaps in innovation. Interchangeable parts, assembly lines, a man on the moon. 

And, most notably, electronic clippers and specialty shears.

Nicky smiles as he takes the clippers out of the cabinet. He remembers all too well the days of straight razors and rusty tools. 

For them, a cut here or there while shaving means nothing, but this tool, this wonderful, humming _tesoro_ in his hands is precise in a way that razors or shears could never be. The tools of the past allowed him to manage their hair. This tool allows him to create art.

Andy first instructed them to cut each other’s hair in the 1980s, after the first use of DNA evidence in a legal court. It was an order of no consequence. Nicky had been cutting Joe’s hair and trimming his beard long before that. Every few weeks, Nicky sits Joe down - on the edge of a bathtub, in the middle of a field - wherever they’re calling home that day and carefully grooms him. 

After watching the ritual for the first time, Booker joked that it was no wonder that Nicky’s people were master sculptors; that level of concentration and care had to run bone deep. Nicky merely shrugged in response. He knew that it had nothing to do with genetics and everything to do with Joe. Being close to Joe, taking care of Joe, loving Joe - that was bone deep.

\---

Nicky playfully waves the clippers, and Joe smiles indulgently and hoists himself up to sit on the bathroom counter. 

“Is today the day I’ll finally feel the breeze on my face again?”

Nicky runs his fingertips through Joe’s beard. “No, I think not,” he says.

“What a shame.” Joe fakes a pout before breaking into a grin and then, finally, schools his face into a neutral expression.

The clippers hum as Nicky passes them near Joe’s face, trimming flyaways and shaping the beard. With the slightest of touches, Nicky tilts Joe’s head. He keeps his eye on his task, but he feels Joe’s gaze on his face, warm as a sunbeam.

“If you want an even cut, you will need to stop smiling,” Nicky says, never pausing his work.

“You’re the one who has to look at me,” Joe chuckles.

“Stop smiling, _caro mio._ ”

“Stop being so utterly tempting, _mio amato._ ”

Nicky cannot stop the small chuckle that escapes him any more than he could stop the wind from blowing. Hundreds of years have not diluted the strength of their affection. Nor has it stifled the white hot heat of their passion, if Joe’s wandering hands hold any indication of where his mind is.

Nicky releases a breath through his nose and continues his work. He fights to keep the smile off his face, fights to keep his hands steady. No one has had more time to practice being an incorrigible flirt than Joe. His teasing is an art. He places each caress carefully, intent on provoking a response.

It’s one of their favorite games to play, one of them teasing the other until they break. Joe has never been in the habit of denying himself his passions, so he usually loses his composure under a few minutes of Nicky’s attention. Nicky, on the other hand, is a man of focus. A man who enjoys competition. His determination to remain calm during their little game only served to egg Joe on over the years. 

And so, with no regard to the sharp clippers passing over his face, Joe lifts his hand to Nicky’s face, running his fingers along his jawline, to the soft skin behind his ear. 

An irrepressible shiver travels through Nicky’s body, and his eyes flutter closed for a brief moment. 

“ _Credo che io vinca,_ ” Joe whispers.

Nicky opens his eyes to tell him _no, you certainly do not win,_ and sees the love of his life, the most handsome man he has ever beheld . . . with a sizable chunk missing from his beard.

Uncontrollable laughter bursts from Nicky, made only worse by Joe’s clueless expression. 

“What?” Joe says, chuckling a little. “What’d I say?”

Nicky tries - really, he does - to speak, but Joe’s lopsided beard is too much. He braces himself against the counter, gestures for Joe to look in the mirror, and desperately tries to catch his breath between giggles. 

Any hope of regaining control of himself flees at Joe’s reaction. 

“You jerk!” Joe bursts out. He jabs Nicky right in the ribs, where he knows he’s incredibly ticklish. Nicky squirms, but it’s no use; Joe is relentless. “Yeah, you think that’s funny?” Joe says. “You think I’m funny looking?” 

Nicky barely squeaks out, “Yes,” and Joe is gone, too. They both devolve into gasping laughter, propping themselves up against each other for support in the small bathroom. 

An immeasurable amount of time later, when air is able to return to their lungs, Nicky picks his head up from Joe’s shoulder and studies his beloved’s face once again.

“You are still incredibly handsome. You never know,” he says, gently wiping away the moisture around Joe’s eyes, “You may start another trend.” 

Joe smirks at the thinly veiled sarcasm and says, “Shut up and shave the rest.” Despite his words, he presses his mouth to Nicky’s forcefully, and it is quite some time before Nicky can complete the task.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you couldn't tell, this was inspired by all the at home haircuts we're doing these days.
> 
> Hope you all are staying safe and happy!


End file.
